PM Modis whirlwind tour of northeastern region on Saturday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Saturday make a whirlwind tour of northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Tripura during which he will lay the foundation stone of new greenfield airport and Sela tunnel, launch of DD Arun Prabha channel and will unveil various other development projects.

Prime Minister Modi will lay the foundation stone of northeast gas grid foundation in Guwahati, and will inaugurate Garjee-Belonia railway line in Tripura, said a statement from the PMO on Friday.

As per the official statement, PM Modi will reach Itanagar from Guwahati on Saturday morning and will unveil a series of development projects at IG Park in Itanagar. He will lay the foundation stone for theconstruction of greenfield airport at Hollongi.

At present, the nearest airport to Itanagar is at Lilabari in Assam at a distance of 80 km. Airport at Hollongi will reduce the distance by a fourth. In addition to providing better connectivity to the region, the airport will also unravel the tourism potential of the state.

The airport will boost the economic growth of the region and will be of strategically important to the nation. The airport will have various sustainability features like a green belt along approach road to act as a noise barrier, rainwater harvesting, use of energy efficient equipment, and so on.

Prime Minister Modi will lay the foundation stone ofSela tunnelin Arunachal Pradesh, which will provide all-weather connectivity to Tawang Valley for civilians as well as security forces throughout the year. The tunnel will reduce travel time to Tawang by an hour and boost tourism and related economic activities in the region.

A new dedicatedDD Channel for Arunachal PradeshDD Arun Prabhawill be launched by PM Modi at IG Park, Itanagar. The channel will be the 24th channel operated by Doordarshan. He will also dedicate110 MW Pare Hydroelectric Plantin Arunachal Pradesh to the nation. The project constructed by NEEPCO will harness hydropower potential of the river Dikrong, a tributary of Brahmaputra, and provide cheap hydroelectric power to the North Eastern states, thereby improving power availability in the region.

Foundation stone for apermanent campus of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII)at Jote, Arunachal Pradesh will be laid by the laid by PM Modi on this occasion. It will cater to film students especially those from the North Eastern states. PM Modi will inaugurate theupgraded Tezu Airportin Arunachal Pradesh. The airport has been retrofitted and a new terminal constructed for making it fit for commercial operations under UDAN scheme.

From Itanagar, PM Modi will return to Guwahati, where he will lay the foundation stone ofNorth East Gas Gridwhich will ensure uninterrupted availability of natural gas across the region and boost industrial growth in the region. The grid is part of the governments plan to provide cheap and quality gas to the entire North East Region.

He will also inauguratea Hollong modular gas processing plant in Tinsukia, Assam. Once inaugurated this facility will deliver 15 per cent of the total gas produced in Assam. He will also inaugurate LPG capacity augmentation of mounted storage vessel in north Guwahati.

The foundation stone ofNRL biorefinery at Numaligarhand a729-km gas pipeline from Barauni-Guwahati passing through Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim, and Assamwill be laid by PM Modi on this occasion.

The last leg of PM Modis visit will be in Agartala, where he will dedicate to the nationGarjee - Belonia railway linethrough the unveiling of a plaque at Swami Vivekananda stadium here. This line will boost Tripura as the gateway to South and Southeast Asia. He will also inauguratethe new complex of Tripura Institute of Technologyat Narsingarh.

Prime Minister will unveil thestatue of Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadurat Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport, Agartala. Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadur is widely regarded as the creator of modern Tripura. He is credited with the planning of Agartala city. The unveiling of his statue is in line with the Union Governments policy of honouring the unsung heroes of India, who have contributed greatly to nation-building. (ANI)